His Prisoner
by Marilyn Stabs
Summary: When a young prisoner of Azkaban comes to stay at Hogwarts, Snape is elected to watch over her. Snape is less than enthusastic about his new role as caretaker, but something unexpected happens. Rated R for future chapters ::devilish grin::
1. Meeting at Midnight

Disclaimer: This is my story, I own the plot. Only one character is a product of my imagination, the rest belong to J.K. Rowling, and I have stolen them for my own purposes. I certainly hope you enjoy this story, and if you do, please honor me with a review. My apologies for any Grammar mistakes, or Misspellings.  
  
  
  
  
  
The clock was chiming midnight when Snape ascended the stairs up to Dumbledore's office. Why on earth he wanted to see him so late at night, he didn't know. The old man had approached him at diner and quietly 'suggested' he give him a visit sometime after midnight, to discuss some extremely private manners. That had certainly gotten Snape's attention. For the rest of the night, he could help wondering what Dumbledore meant.  
  
He was always worried about his position as teacher at the school. Dumbledore was being extremely generous in giving him a second chance at making a life for himself. And he gave him his trust as well, allowing him watch over an extremely large group of children. He also put up with Snape's less chipper attitude towards those very students.  
  
Snape felt his stomach drop just a little as he came up to the door of the office. He took a deep breath and then entered.  
  
To his surprise, the office bustling with noise. Practically every other teather at the school was packed in the relatively small office. McGonagall smiled at Snape as he entered, but he couldn't help but feel nervous. What was all of this?  
  
"Ah, Professor Snape, you're here," Dumbledore said loudly over the murmuring of the small crowd. Everyone got quiet and assembled themselves into a sort of circle, putting Snape in the middle.  
  
Snape looked around, his lip curled up into a sneer, "What is the meaning of all this?"  
  
"We have a very important matter to discuss with you," McGonagall said from a corner. Her face was lit by the flicking candle's near by, and the scene was a bit eerie.  
  
Snape's eye's darted about, "Well, what is it?"  
  
Dumbledore was searching inside a drawer of his desk. Snape came forward as Dumbledore produced a piece of parchment. He handed it to Snape, who saw that it was a piece of ripped newspaper. A muggle newspaper, he saw, noting that the fuzzy picture was motionless.  
  
"Read," Dumbledore urged him.  
  
But Snape's eyes were being drawn to the picture. It was of a young girl, no older than her mid teens. She had long, impossibly dark hair framing a face that was over shown by two large, sparkling eyes. They looked dark in the picture, but there was really no way to tell what color they really were. Her full lips were turned down into a frown. She was dressed in Muggle attire- a skimpy top that didn't hid much, especially not her small, perky breasts.   
  
'He didn't show you this so you could ogle her body,' Snape scolded himself. He forced his gaze to the article. The bold title declared 'KILLER CAUGHT AT CRIME SCENE' and underneath 'Punishment Pending'.  
  
"Who is this?" Snape asked, looking up from the paper.  
  
"Her name is Natalie Blake. This article was published over a year ago." Dumbledore explained. He handed Snape another article, again from a Muggle paper. It showed the same picture as the first, this time smaller. The headline read 'MULTIPLE MURDERER DISAPEARS BEFORE TRAIL'.  
  
Snape shook his head, "I still don't understand. What does this Muggle girl have to do with me?"  
  
"Well, that's just it. She's no Muggle. She descended from a line of pure wizards that can be traced back nearly five hundred years. The Blake's happen to be close friends of the Malfoy's."  
  
Snape tilted his head, interested now. Dumbledore handed him yet another piece of parchment. This time, it was a Wizard newspaper. A French one. The picture showed the same, lovely yound girl with hair a bit longer, being ushered into a cell.  
  
"She's in prison?" Snape asked.  
  
"Azkaban."  
  
Snape's head snapped up. "Azkaban," he echoed.  
  
"Yes. She killed three Muggle boys with a curse she learned from her father. We tried our hardest to cover everything up, but the non-wizard media got a hold of the story. Luckily, she was able to 'disappear' before her trail. She was sent to the ministry of magic and was sentenced to twenty years in Azkaban. Certainly an unwarranted punishment, considering her motives to commit the crime."  
  
"And what were those?"  
  
"I'm afraid her file is confidential. In time, she may tell you herself."  
  
Snape's brows narrowed over his shinning eyes, "And how would she do that?"  
  
"That is why we called you hear. We made a sort of deal. You see, Natalie was studying abroad in France before this incident. She was banned from that school after convicted of the crime, but she's been continuing her studies in Azkaban through our school. She has some of the top scores on her OWLs. She's an extremely bright young girl, and it seemed a waste to leave her rot in that horrible place when she has so much obvious potential. So, we made a deal, and she is being brought here. To Hogwarts."  
  
"What?!" Snape exploded, "That's insane! You're bringing a killer here? To live amoung our students."  
  
Dumbledore's eyes narrowed, and he leaned forward and planted his hands on the edge of his desk, "We're giving her a second chance, like we've given many people here at our school. Everyone deserves a second chance, don't you agree, Severus?"  
  
Snape gulped and nodded, feeling his stomach twist up.  
  
Dumbledore straighten and cleared his throat, "And, of course, she can't stay in the dorms with the students. So we've decided that…"  
  
"No!" Snape yelled. He could see where this was headed, and we he would have no part in it.  
  
"She will be staying with you, in your quarters," Dumbledore finished.  
  
"You can not ask that of me," Snape growled. He turned, seeing the teacher close in to his left. He looked the opposite direction and saw that he was literally trapped.  
  
"Oh, but we can," said McGonagal from behind him.  
  
"You're the only one with an extra room," Dumbledore added, "And we are sure you can deal with her, should she prove to have deserved her sentence."  
  
"No!"  
  
"But don't worry, we done extensive background research and she's been analyzed by psychologists. I have even personally met with her, and I can assure you, you have nothing to fear."  
  
"I wont do it," Snape spat over his shoulder. He was on his way to the door.  
  
"I'm afraid you don't have a choice."  
  
Snape spun around, his dark robes flaring out around him, "What?"  
  
"You don't have a choice. You either do this, or lose your job."  
  
Snape stood, staring the Headmaster straight into his eyes. He didn't move, just heaved heavy, hot breaths. If Dumbledore didn't know the man so well, he might have been frightened. That look certainly brought terror to Snape's students.  
  
The other teachers exchanged weary looks. They'd spent the last few hours discussing how to break the news to the moody professor, and they had prepared for the worst. They were all hoping that it wouldn't come to that. They watched Snape anxiously. He wasn't moving. No emotion was displayed on his face.  
  
Finally, he said, "When does the little prat arrive?"  
  
The was an audible exhale on the part of the entire group. Dumbledore walked out form behind his desk and walked to the grandfather clock that stood in the corner. He turned back to the group.  
  
"I believe that she should be arriving now," he said. Then he lead the way to the door. 


	2. Arrival of the Guest

"She's been recovering with the Malfoy family," Dumbledore was saying, outside of the castle. They were trekking over towards the lake.  
  
"Hmm, that explains Draco's absence," Snape said absently. His mind was elsewhere. Back at the picture he'd seen in the newspapers. He kept thinking about that mass of shinny hair and those smoldering eyes. It was wrong for him to be thinking that, but he couldn't help it. A young, beautiful girl was going to be living with HIM. He chuckled, thinking about how long it'd been since that had happened. He'd lost most of his interest in women in the past couple years. He simply didn't have time for them, what with being a Death Eater, and a Teacher. Redeeming himself and all that.   
  
But now, he was going to be waking up to one each and every day. It was a strange, unsettling thought.  
  
He certainly didn't like this idea. For one, despite being gorgeous, this girl was a murderess. And she would be sleeping one room away from him.  
  
That shot a rush of blood to his lower regions. No matter how hard he tried to keep his mind off of it, the fact that this girl was going to be staying with him excited him. He visibly scowled, wishing his hormones would keep themselves in check. He didn't have time to deal with this. He had to get his mind out of the gutter.  
  
He tried to concentrate on being angry at Dumbledore for putting him in this situation, but he just couldn't. It was certainly fair, after all the old man had done for him. And it was true that he was the one best equipped for dealing with this type.  
  
As they approached the waters edge he could see a boat in the distance. His insides tightened up and his breath caught in his throat. He could make out four figures seated, two very close together. The tiny boat was approaching fast. Dumbledore was rambling about something but Snape wasn't paying a bit of attention.  
  
The dark water sloshed around the edges of the craft, seeming to be urging it forward. Someone on the boat stood up, holding a lantern. It was Luscious, he saw. Below him must be his son, the pale haired, cocky Draco. And beside him, wrapped up into a small bundle, was another person. Was it her? It had to be. The only other person on the boat was a the person rowing, and surely they would have hired someone to do that, not forced the girl to.  
  
The blanket around her, covered everything but her face, which was lost in a shadow. He couldn't see anymore clearly as the boat pulled up to shore. The girl was hidden completely.  
  
The boat hit the ground with a thump and a creak, and the man rowing jumped out to secure it. Luscious stepped out first, followed by his son.  
  
Malfoy had turned into a nice looking young man. The sixth year was tall, if a bit lanky. His silvery hair was longish, out grown and pushed back with stands that constantly fell into his eyes. His lips had filled out and seemed to be permanently stuck in a sneer.   
  
The boy turned back to the boat and held out his hand to the blanket covered blob in the seat. A small, delicate hand emerged from the pile and Malfoy took it carefully and helped her up. She tumbled to shore, as if too weak to regain any balance. Draco dutifully put his arm around her to steady her. The other teachers were exchanging glances, obviously shocked to see the boy committing any act of kindness. Snape himself was a bit surprised, but not overly so. He's seen Draco be kind to those he fancied. And he imagined anyone would fancy the pretty girl under that pile of fabric.  
  
"Ah, Dumbledore," Luscious said, giving him a quick hug.  
  
"How is the girl?" the Headmaster asked.  
  
Luscious nodded back to the shivering, blanket tangled mess in his sons arms.  
  
"Recovering still. Should be well enough to attend classes, I think."  
  
"Good, good. I can't thank you enough for taking her in."  
  
Luscious smiled, "It was really no problem. The Blake family has done so much for us, it was the least I could do to entertain their lovely daughter."  
  
Dumbledore nodded.  
  
"Well, lets bring her in. no use standing out here in the cold," McGonagall said. Everyone nodded and murmered, and turned about.  
  
Snape kept his eye on the girl and Draco. He had his arm around her, and was holding her close, saying something quietly. The blanket pile moved up and down quickly and started to move forward. The group took long strides back to the castle.  
  
Snape couldn't help but feel left out of the loop. Up until a few minutes ago, he'd had no idea this was happening. The group appeared to be acting out a well thought out plan. Everyone moved as one, and did everything quickly and efficiently. And here he was, bumbling along, completely confused.  
  
Before he knew it, everyone was gathered around the door to his private quarters. He quickly unlocked the door. A few teachers departed there. The Malfoy's and their little bundle entered, followed by McGonagall and Dumbledore, then himself.  
  
Dumbledore and Luscious finished up some last minute business and then Luscious turned to the blob.  
  
"Well, Natalie, it's been more than a pleasure having you. You're welcome to come back and visit whenever you please. My wife and I will be thrilled to have you."  
  
Slowly, the blanket slide down, revealing her face.  
  
Snape fought the urge to gasp. She was more amazing than in the picture. Her hair was practically aflame with color, ranging from black, to purple and blue. It cascaded down her shoulders and into the blanket, still wrapped around her bony shoulders. She was thinner than in the picture. Her cheeks had sunken in a bit, making her high cheekbone painfully visible. And her eyes were the color of smoke. There was no other way to describe their murky, hazel depths.  
  
What shocked him was the long, angry red scar that ran from above her left eye all the way down her cheek. It was ghastly, the way it defaced her good looks. Snape shivered despite himself, wondering where on earth she'd gotten something like that.  
  
"Thank you," she said. Her voice was very low and shaky. "You've been so…so kind."  
  
Snape backed away, fearing she would break into tears. Her voice was so unsteady it seemed inevitable. But she cleared her throat and tossed her head up, forcing smile.  
  
"Well, good luck," Luscious said. He waved and disappeared out of the room, with McGonagal following.  
  
Malfoy leaned in and hugged the frail girl gently, as if he were afraid she'd break. But then, in her condition, it might very well he possible, Snape thought.  
  
"Good luck," he said softly. "I'll see you in the morning. Coem find me as soon as you can."  
  
She nodded and her turned away. He faced Snape and flashed a grin, "Take good care of her, Professor," he said, and left as well.  
  
Dumbledore offered a few more words of advice, before departing and leaving the room empty except for Snape and the girl. He felt suddenly, very awkward.  
  
The air seemed thin between them. She stood, looking down at the ground. Snape opened his mouth to say something, but nothing came out. His eyes were drawn again to the scare. It hadn't been there in the pictures taken before her trail. Had she gotten it there? In Azkaban? If he were a decent man, he would have thought it was an outrage to do that kind of injury to a girl so young. But then, he'd seen a lot of the world, and he knew that bad things happened to anyone, and nothing made you immune to hardship.  
  
Her eyes flicked towards his, catching him in her stormy gaze.  
  
"They did it there," she said.  
  
Snape was flustered for a moment. "Did what?" he asked, narrowing his eyes.  
  
"This," she said, touching the mark on her cheek lightly, then flinching. "Everyone asks. I thought I might as well get it out of the way."  
Snape was at a lose for what to say. He felt as if he'd been caught, and felt dutifully guilty.  
  
"Well, thank you for informing me," he said blandly, "Now let me get this out of the way. You'll be living with me, therefore by my rules. I don't care what Dumbledore tells you. When you're hear, it's under my rules, understand?"  
  
"Perfectly," she answered.  
  
Well, that was easy, he thought. Maybe he should have been a bit nicer to her considering the circumstances, but then, he didn't believe in babying anyone. Especially not a murderer.  
  
"Well, then. We should probably be retiring, don't you think?" he asked.  
  
"You haven't shown me to my rooms."  
  
"They're right there, through that hall and to the left. I assume you can find your own way."  
  
She didn't answer, just spun around and walked along, dragging that stupid blanket after her. Her long hair tumble out and down her back.  
  
Well, she seemed to be able to take care of herself, he thought. But as she reached for the doorknob, her saw her step falter. But, sensing it was the right thing to do, he simply turned a blind eye, and went to his own room, and locked himself in. 


	3. More Than Necessary

Snape awoke to silence the next day. He lay back in his bed amongst black satin colored pillows and a similar bed spread. His had his head resting under his clasped hands and he took in a deep breath of air and sighed it out.  
  
This was normally the best part of his day. No whining, pathetic students bumbling up their potions and damaging his classroom. No constant lecturing the same material over and over. No grading papers until his eyes hurt and his arm cramped. No teachers. No owls or other stupid pests. It was just him, all alone in his quarters.  
  
Or at least, it was supposed to be.  
  
He couldn't help but be aware of the female presence that had taken up residence in his little apartment. Although he couldn't here her, he knew she was there, a room away, breathing up all his air and taking up space. It irked him to have to share. He valued his privacy above all things, and now that had been taken away from him.   
  
No longer able to enjoy relaxing in his bed, he sat up and climbed to the floor. He pulled his black robe over his naked body and slipped his feet into his slippers. He personally thought slippers were ridiculous, but ever sense he'd been bought a pair for last Christmas, he wasn't with out. His room, being up so high in the tower, was rather cold, and he found that when his feet were warm, his whole body tended to follow suit.   
  
He shuffled awkwardly across the floor to the door knob. He twisted it silently, hoping not to wake Natalie up. It was early still, and he had a chance of being able to sneak out of the room without her. He simply had to manage to take a quiet bath and dress, and then creep out the door. He could spend his extra half hour or so in the library. He was certain no one would be in there that early. He suspected he was the only early riser in the school, what with so many of his students notorious for running late.  
  
His main living quarters were empty, and Natalie's door was shut. He stood still a moment and listened, and upon hearing nothing, turn and walked happily towards the bathroom. Well, he thought, this wasn't so bad. If he made it habit to rise before her, and maybe get in later at night, he'd hardly have to see her at all. Maybe if he got good, he could pretend she wasn't even there.  
  
He tied the sash around his robe at the door to his private bathroom and pushed open the door. Suddenly, a huge yawn hit him and he stretched back closing his eyes and sucking in the air. He stopped halfway through when he heard the ripple of water. His eye's popped open and he stumble back.  
  
"Oh, good morning professor," said a cool, throaty voice.  
  
Sitting in his beautiful, antique style claw footed bath tub, with the water filled so high that the bubbly liquid was sloshing over the sides, was a very naked Natalie Blake. A thin film of porcelain white bubbles coated her olive colored skin, and her wet hair hung like a piece of black silk down her back. She was holding a rag near her color bones, which she twisted , sending a stream of steaming water cascading down her front.  
  
Snape was at a loss.  
  
He back up and threw his hands over his eyes.  
  
"Natalie, might I ask what you are doing?" he growled.  
  
"I would think that it wouldn't be hard to tell. I'm bathing."  
  
"In MY bathtub?"  
  
"Why? Do I have my own?" she asked sarcastically.  
  
Snape threw down his hands in outrage and then snapped them up over his eyes again after getting another eyeful of the girls shinning, naked body.  
  
"No, but you can't just use mine without asking."  
  
He heard the water slosh and knew she was standing up now. His heart was pounding so fast that he couldn't count the beats.  
  
"Well, I would have but I didn't want to wake you. But, I can assure you, if I'd known you were going to be such a tyrant about me trying to get clean, I wouldn't have been so considerate as to let you sleep!"  
  
Snape didn't know what to say, so instead he reached blindly towards the rack where he kept his towels and tossed one at her. He didn't open his eyes until her felt he breeze by him. After that, he slammed the bathroom door shut and locked himself in. He waited until he heard his front door open and close, before coming out to find his house eerily empty.  
  
"Good riddance," he said to himself, as he walked into his own living room, pretending to be glad that it was over with.  
  
But deep down, he couldn't help but think that nothing that...well...interesting had happened in a long while. 


End file.
